Baby Steps
by Doctor Addison Montgomery
Summary: COMPLETE. KateTony. Kate's pregnant with their first child but things go from bad to worse when she is taken ill and Tony is hurt on the job. Will they get to the birth in one piece? Lots of fluff along the way! 4 parter. Please review! Xx.
1. Part 1

**Baby Steps  
Part One**

**Summary: KateTony. Kate's pregnant but will things run smoothy? Pointless fluff with angst thrown in along the way. Will only be a few chapters long. Please review! Xx**

**Yes, I've done it again and started another fic but this won't be too long, I hope! Thanks to everyone who has reviewed my other two Tate fics which are in progress! Xxx.**

* * *

"Hey honey!" Tony DiNozzo called out as he shut the front door behind him. "I'm home!" It sounded so ordinary and domesticated but Tony found himself loving these feelings. He had never wanted to settle for a normal life like this, he had always enjoyed the lifestyle of a bachelor but as he had got older he had begun to realise that he was lonely. His many encounters with women only filled the void and left him feeling even emptier. Tony needed someone to love and someone to love him back. "Where are you?" He continued, walking down the hallway and standing at the bottom of the stairs.

"Bedroom!" The reply came back and Tony kicked off his shoes and headed up the stairs to greet his girlfriend.

Tony entered their bedroom and smiled, all he could see of her at the moment was in profile. His smiled broadened as he took in every inch of her, concentrating most of his attention of the bulge of her stomach, growing larger and larger with maternity. To Tony she had never looked more beautiful than she did now. Pregnancy suited her. He crossed the room to where she was standing. With a little difficulty he wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed the side of her neck. She leaned her head against his chest and breathed in his scent. After a few moments Tony released her from his embrace.

"You okay?" He asked, looking her deep in the eye with concern.

She sighed. "My clothes look ridiculous, my bra doesn't fit, my back aches, my feet are killing me, my hormones are all over place but yeah I'm great thanks Tony." He words dripped with sarcasm.

"Well, if it's any consolation, you look beautiful." Tony replied, ignoring most of her previous remarks. He knew she was as pleased about the baby as he was, if not more so, but she had a different way of showing it. Tony supposed he would too if he had to carry their unborn child around for nine months.

She sighed. "I don't feel it. I feel fat. And I want chocolate ice cream."

Tony couldn't help but smile. They had bought so much chocolate ice cream over the last five months that they might as well have had shares in Ben and Jerry's.

"I love you, Kate." He said, taking her face in his hand and running his thumb across her cheek.

She smiled up at him. "I love you too, Tony."

* * *

Kate began to waddle towards the bathroom, she was five months pregnant now and nearing the end of her second trimester. To begin with she hadn't shown much at all but now she finding it hard to see her feet and bending over was becoming more and more of a problem. She was glad that she had Tony though; she had never expected him to be so attentive and so obviously happy about the prospect of soon becoming a father for the first time. 

"Kate?" Tony called out from the bedroom where he was changing out of his work clothes into jeans and a t-shirt.

"I'm going to have a bath, I think." She replied.

"Let me." Tony said, heading to the bathroom and suppressing a smirk as he saw Kate trying to reach over to turn the bath taps on.

"I can do it." Was Kate's forceful response. Pregnancy had done nothing to decrease her stubbornness.

"Kate…" Tony began, gently but with a hint of warning in his tone of voice. "Remember what the doctor said honey, you've got to take it easy; for your sake and our baby's."

Kate sighed and rolled her eyes. "Yes, Gibbs." She replied.

Tony laughed. "I'll tell him you said that!"

* * *

Back in their bedroom Kate undressed and put on her bathrobe, at least that still fitted her; at least for now. Tony ran the bath water to the right temperature and added plenty of relaxing lavender and camomile bath salts for Kate. 

"Do you want me to make dinner while you're in the bath?" Tony asked Kate as she appeared in the doorway wrapped in her bathrobe with her hair pinned up.

"Tony, you don't have to do all this for me, I can fend for myself you know." She replied gently.

"I know you can but I want to do it."

Kate closed the distance and kissed him softly. "I really do appreciate everything you're doing for me."

Tony put his arms around her and rubbed the small of her back. "I know." He whispered in her ear. Kate placed her arms by her side and began to life up Tony's shirt.

"How about we get a take away?" She asked, her voice dropping a tone as she lifted the garment over Tony's head.

Tony smiled. "God, you pregnant women." He laughed as Kate began to unbuckle his belt.

"And what do you know about pregnant women?" Kate asked.

Tony rolled his eyes. "Enough - believe me."

* * *

Tony was downstairs on the phone ordering their Chinese take out when Kate downstairs wearing an old pair of his boxer shorts and a baggy NCIS t-shirt. 

"Hey," He smiled as she sank down onto the sofa.

She smiled back. "When's the food coming?"

"It'll be here at about seven." Tony replied, moving closer to Kate on the sofa so that she could lean into him.

"Okay." She smiled up at him and then reached for the remote control for the television.

* * *

When the doorbell rang twenty minutes later they were engrossed in a movie. Tony went to answer the door and came back with a steaming paper bag of Chinese food. He spread the food out on the coffee table and they both tucked in, Kate's appetite now matching Tony's now that she was pregnant. 

"That was delicious." Kate said, finishing her last mouthful and putting down the carton and her chopsticks.

"Glad you liked it." Tony smiled, placing his own carton on the table in front of them. Kate leaned against Tony again and he wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

"So, where's my chocolate ice cream?"

* * *

Once the first movie had finished Tony got up to put another DVD in the machine. He carefully removed himself from underneath Kate and crossed to the television set. A cry of pain caused him spin around quickly, watching as Kate's face contorted. He dashed across to her, taking her hand in his. 

"Baby, what's wrong?" He asked.

Tears shone in Kate's eyes as she gripped Tony's hand.

"I don't know." She managed to say finally. "I think something is wrong with the baby."

Acting on autopilot Tony helped Kate to her feet and lead her to the car, only stopping for his keys and phone on the way out of the house before they sped off to the hospital. Both of them were running on pure adrenaline.


	2. Part 2

**Baby Steps  
Part Two**

**Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed the first part! Love you all loads - you rock:D Here's chapter two for you! Oh, I researched Kate's medical condition but if I've got any of the details wrong please forgive me, all of my medical knowledge comes from Grey's Anatomy and House!  
Hope you enjoy this chapter, there is one or possibly two more to go!  
Please review! Xxx.**

* * *

Tony broke every limit as he sped towards the local hospital that happened to be Bethesda Naval Hospital. Every now and then he stole a sideways glance at Kate to see how she was holding up. Kate was trying to mask her pain but it was obvious that something was very wrong with either her or the baby.

"Hang in there, baby." Tony said as the pulled to a stop at traffic lights. He drummed his fingers impatiently on the steering wheel as he waited for the light to change to green again. He sped away as soon as the last car had passed him from the oncoming direction. When they finally reached the hospital Tony pulled into the first place he could find and placed NCIS identification on the dashboard so the car would get clamped or towed away. Tony went round to Kate's side of the car and helped her out and in the direction of the hospital. With his ID at the ready Tony barged his way up to the reception and demanded that someone should come and see to Kate straight away. He then helped her into a uncomfortable plastic chair in the waiting room and paced in frustration.

"Come and sit down honey." Kate said. "Please."

Tony could see that he was making Kate more anxious so he went and sat beside her, taking her hand in his and squeezing it gently.

"How are you feeling?" He asked softly.

Kate squeezed his hand back. "A little bit better I suppose."

* * *

A middle aged female doctor approached them and introduced herself. 

"My name is Doctor Tamara Smith, you must be Caitlin Todd." She said to Kate who nodded her reply. "If you'd like to follow me Caitlin…" She said, helping Kate to her feet. "And if you'd like to wait here…Mr Todd…"

"DiNozzo." Tony replied. "Tony DiNozzo."

People had often wondered why they hadn't got married. They had been together for three years now and neither of them felt they needed a legal agreement to prove their love for each other. Tony had changed a lot from his playboy days and seemed truly happy in sharing a relationship of commitment with Kate. In fact it was his idea for them to start a family.

Dr Smith lead Kate away to an examination room leaving Tony alone to wait for the verdict.

"How far along are you Caitlin?" The doctor asked, closing the door to the small room and getting Kate to climb onto the operating couch.

"Five and a half months." She told the doctor who made a note of this in a file with Kate's name on the front.

"Your last ultrasound was two weeks ago, is that correct?" She asked and Kate nodded.

"Everything seemed normal then." Kate confirmed.

"Well, I'd like to do another one just to see what's going on." Dr Smith requested and began to get the ultrasound equipment ready. Kate lifted up her top and prepared for the coldness of the ultrasound gel, she winced as it came into contact with her bare skin.

Dr Smith carefully studied the picture on the screen, a crease forming on her forehead as she frowned. "Everything appears to be fairly normal for this stage in your pregnancy." She said, clearing up the equipment. "I'll take your blood pressure too."

Kate nodded, praying that everything would be normal. She couldn't even bare thinking about something bad happening to her and Tony's baby.

* * *

Tony had bought a cup of coffee from a vending machine and was absent-mindedly reading the sports section from one of the newspapers. He wasn't really paying attention, as his thoughts were too preoccupied with Kate and the baby. He looked up with a mixture of fear and relief as the double doors opened and Kate and the doctor reappeared. Tony leapt to his feet and walked over to them. 

"Is everything okay?" His words tumbling over themselves in her rush to speak.

The doctor nodded. "Caitlin has a condition called preeclampsia, this isn't uncommon as around five percent of pregnant women develop it during their pregnancies, especially if they are having their first baby. We don't know what causes it but Caitlin has fairly high blood pressure, which doesn't help. She needs plenty of bed rest, no stress and a healthy diet with plenty of iron. If she finds herself feeling worse she knows to come back here straight away. Hopefully we've caught this early enough for it not to be an issue. Your baby seems to be very healthy so there should be very few complications."

The look of relief on Tony's face was obvious and Kate smiled. Tony took her hand.

"Thank you very much Doctor Smith." He said and Kate smiled her thanks.

"Bed rest and no stress? Do you think you can cope with that Katie?" Tony asked as he led her out of the hospital. Kate glared at him and Tony smiled, she was back.

* * *

"I'll call Gibbs in the morning and tell him I'm not coming in tomorrow." Tony told Kate, as they got into bed together not much later. 

"It's fine Tony, honestly. Abby said she would come and see me tomorrow anyway." Kate replied, trying to get comfortable. It wasn't easy when you were five months pregnant.

"I thought Doctor Smith said no stress." Tony joked.

Kate reached out and prodded his arm. "It'll be good to see her anyway. I hate being on maternity leave; I want to be back at work. I wish Gibbs wasn't so stubborn."

Tony laughed. "That doesn't sound like anybody I know." This comment received another sharp jab in the arm from Kate.

"I don't want to leave you though." Tony said, on a serious note, for once.

"I'll be fine and I have your number and Doctor Smith's if I need anything. I'm pregnant not mentally ill Tony." Tony opened his mouth to speak but Kate glared at him. "Don't say a word DiNozzo." She warned.

* * *

"Kate!" Abby exclaimed, hugging her friend fiercely late the next morning. "Pregnancy just makes you more beautiful! When are you gonna hurry up and make me a godmother?!" She asked excitedly. 

"Right now if you don't let go of me." Kate replied, half way between being humourous and serious.

Abby looked apologetic and released her grip on Kate, instead she rooted around in her large black shoulder bag covered with safety pins and badges for heavy metal bands Kate had never heard of before.

"I come bearing gifts." She said, thrusting a quickly defrosting tub of chocolate ice cream in Kate's direction and pulling out a stack of DVDs.

"You watch chick flicks?" Kate asked in surprise.

Abby nodded. "I make McGee watch them too." She laughed conspiratorially.

Kate arched an eyebrow and led Abby through to the living area and they sat down on the sofa.

"Let me put that in the freezer for you." Abby said, gesturing to the ice cream.

"It's okay I'll…"

Abby cut her off. "No you won't. I am under strict instructions from Tony to let you rest." She said firmly, taking the ice cream out to the kitchen. She came back into the room and put the first of the DVDs into the player. Abby then settled back into a chair and made sure Kate was comfortable on the sofa which had been made up as a bed for during the day. The opening credits were rolling just as the phone rang, startling both Kate and Abby. The Goth offered to answer, in fact she told Kate in no uncertain terms that she would answer it.  
"Hello, the Todd-DiNozzo residence." She said and Kate stifled a laugh. "Oh, hey Tim." Kate couldn't hear the other side of the conversation that irritated but she had to let it go, nothing was going to stress her out and harm her baby.

"What did you say?" Abby asked, trying to keep her voice neutral. She swore and Kate made to get up off the sofa. She could sense that something was wrong. Taking a deep cleansing breath Abby hung up the phone and turned around in surprise to see Kate standing in front of her.

"What are you doing out of bed?" Abby asked.

Kate ignored the question. "What's going on Abby?"

Abby sighed deeply. "That was McGee, something's happened to Tony. He's being taken to hospital." She cringed as she watched Kate's face crumble as he hormones took over. Abby hugged the pregnant woman tightly, so much for bed rest and no stress.


	3. Part 3

**Baby Steps  
Part Three**

**Thanks again to everyone who reviewed the last chapter! I'll do proper thank yous at the end of the next chapter which _will_ be the final one!  
Please review and I hope you enjoy. The next part will be very fluffy! Xx.**

* * *

Kate felt a little comforted by Abby's embrace but every impulse in her body was telling her to get to the hospital as quickly as possible. She pulled away from Abby, reaching out for her coat that was hung up in the hall. 

"I need to get to the hospital Ab, I have to see Tony." She fought to keep her tone neutral but it was bordering on the hysterical.

Abby rubbed her friend's back. "Come on, I'll drive." She said soothingly.

Kate climbed up into the passenger seat of Abby's black car and was nearly blasted out of the vehicle by the heavy metal blasting from the sound system.

"Sorry." Abby apologised, turning the volume down. "It helps me concentrate."

She floored the accelerator and sped away from the house towards the hospital. Kate grabbed the door handle to keep up right as Abby rounded the corners, her driving as erratic as expected, though nothing compared to Gibbs'. However, it had it's upsides, they arrived at the hospital long before they would have done if Kate had driven.

"You okay?" Abby asked, stopping abruptly in a parking space and reaching out to squeeze Kate's hand in her's. Her heavily made up eyes were filled with concern for both of her friends and their baby.

Kate nodded, blinking rapidly. "I will be as soon as I can see Tony." She replied, opening the car door and getting out. Abby followed her into the hospital, praying that everything would work out.

"Anthony DiNozzo." Kate said, breathlessly approaching the reception desk and refraining from any pleasantries. "Where can I find Anthony DiNozzo?"

"Honey, sit down." Abby said, leading Kate over to a waiting room chair, similar to the one Tony had occupied the night before. That seemed so long ago now. Abby went back up the reception desk and asked the blonde calmly what the news was on Tony.

Kate fidgeted in her seat as she watched Abby conversing with the receptionist. She tried to read their facial expressions but it was impossible to know if the news was good or bad. Finally Abby came back to her and helped her to her feet.

"Tony is in recovery." She told Kate. "Visitors aren't really allowed but I told the receptionist about you be pregnant and your preeclampsia, so she okayed it."

Kate waddled down the corridor to the recovery unit, finding it hard to keep up with Abby's energetic pace.

"You didn't threaten her, did you?" Kate asked breathlessly.

Abby turned around and feigned a shocked expression as she linked her arm through Kate's.

"I'm wounded Kate." She joked, trying to keep Kate's mood positive for her sake and the baby's. The pregnant woman leaned into Abby as the continued down the long corridor. The mood between them had become deadly sombre again as they approached the side room where Tony was being cared for.

"I don't know if I can go in." Kate said, tears shining in her eyes as she subconsciously placed her hands on her rounded stomach. The hormones had kicked in again.

"Of course you can." Abby encouraged. "Tony will be pleased to see you."

Kate accepted Abby's advice and took a deep breath before she pushed open the door to the room.

"Aren't you coming in?" Kate asked. "Tony will want to see you too." Abby nodded and followed Kate into the room.

Tony was propped up with several pillows and the tubes that entered his body were hooked up to monitors that took up most of the room. Seeing Tony like this brought tears to Kate's eyes again. She couldn't bear to see him like this. He grinned when he saw Kate and Abby enter the room, beckoning for Kate to come nearer.

"Hey." He said, his voice muffled and a little hoarse.

Abby pulled up a chair for Kate but the Goth remained standing, shifting her weight from one foot to another.

"Are you going to be alright?" Abby asked, getting straight to the heart of the matter.

Tony nodded a little painfully. "They want to keep me hospitalised for a while but I should be just fine." He reassured both of the women.

Abby nodded as she took in the information. "I'll go and wait in the cafeteria. Let me know when you want taking home." She told Kate and left with a final wave to Tony.

Tony reached out for Kate's hand and squeezed it as hard as he was able to.

"I'm so sorry for this Kate." He apologised. "You've got enough to worry about without me being in hospital."

Kate was surprised and shocked; she squeezed Tony's hand back.

"Don't be sorry. It's not your fault!"

"I know but I feel guilty. It was only yesterday that we were rushing you up here. I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you or our baby."

Kate stroked Tony's palm with her thumb. "We're fine Tony." She assured him.

"Good." Tony smiled. "I love you so much."

Tears sparkled in Kate's eyes and she tried to wipe them away before Tony noticed. "I love you too Tony." She replied, leaning over, with some difficulty, to kiss his cheek. "When will they discharge you?" She asked.

"I don't know yet." Tony explained. "It depends on how quickly my body responds to the treatment."

Kate nodded, trying to hide how disappointed she was. "What exactly happened?"

Tony sighed. "Gibbs, McGee and I were at a crime scene when we heard that the suspect might still be there. He was and he was armed too. The three of us split up to try and take him down but he escaped Gibbs and McGee and shot at me. Fortunately he missed any vital organs but there was a lot of bleeding. He pointed to the bandaging around his left leg."

"Poor baby." Kate said, lifting Tony's hand up to her face. "You really had me worried there." She confessed, moving Tony's hand to rest on her pregnant stomach now. "I thought we were going to lose you."

Tony blinked, tears threatening to fall from his own eyes. "Never." He assured her.

* * *

Tony was discharged a fortnight later and Kate had never been more pleased to have him at home with her. They received visits from Abby and McGee and Gibbs and Jenny and they were all looking forward to the birth of Kate's baby. The pregnancy was progressing well now and Kate's stress levels were starting to decrease now that she knew Tony was going to be okay. 

Two months later Kate woke up with stabbing cramp pains in her stomach and began to panic."

"Tony!" She hissed, prodding his side with her nails to wake him up. He groggily looked across at his girlfriend and could see that she was obviously in pain.

"Babe, what's wrong?" He asked sleepily.

"I think the baby is coming." Kate replied, feeling her contractions starting.

"But we've got another month till the due date!" Tony said, his eyes wide.

"Well I'm sorry if this isn't convenient for you but there's nothing I can do about it!" She replied sarcastically, biting down on her lower lip to stop herself from screaming at the pain.

Tony jumped out of bed and reached from the phone, quickly dialling the hospital number as Kate's contractions came closer together. He moved around to her side of the bed and squeezed her hand in his.

"Tony…" Kate began uncertainly. "I think my waters just broke."

After a shared look of panic between them Tony went to get Kate's coat and wrapped it around her before helping her downstairs. Once Kate was safely in the car, Tony slipped in behind the steering while and drove as fast as he could towards Bethesda Hospital.

**And we're off to the hospital yet again. I promise I'll find an original way to end my chapters one day! Please leave a review! Xx**


	4. Part 4

**Baby Steps  
Part 4**

**Well here you have it, the final installment of my first completed NCIS fic! I hope you enjoyed reading it because I've loved writing. I have to warn you that this chapter is really fluffy and there's not much plot at all!  
Thanks so much to: Tiana, Bex, Abc, Sweet Lil Loz, Spiffy-Georgie-Tate-4Eva, Mandy9578, PrestonGal, NCISAbbyLover, Kandon Kuuson, CampbellK2, CharmedBabyWyatt, MWSATDKT and Black Rose Goth for reviewing!  
Please review this fic for me one last time:D xxx.**

* * *

"Anybody having déjà vu?" Tony asked as he drove through the third red light in a row. Every now and then he would take his eyes off the road to look across at Kate to make sure that she was okay. 

Kate didn't reply but let out a muffled groan of pain from the passenger seat. By the time they pulled into the hospital car park once more Tony was running purely on adrenaline and later he would remember very little about the manic drive to the hospital and the lead up to the birth of their beautiful child. Tony carefully guided Kate to the reception desk and they were both hurried up to the maternity ward by a female doctor who seemed to appear from out of nowhere.

* * *

When they reached the maternity ward the doctor, Claire Tanner, opened Kate's records on the computer screen while a team of midwives escorted the pregnant woman to one of the maternity side rooms. Tony stood nervously in the corridor, shifting his weight from one foot to the other and not quite knowing what to do with himself. Claire seemed to understand his agitation and looked up at him sympathetically. 

"Would you like to go through and wait with your wife?" She asked.

"Girlfriend." Tony corrected but he nodded all the same. Wishing, not for the first time, that he had summoned the nerve to ask Kate to marry him but then she had become pregnant and everything had been so hectic ever since. Claire pointed to the door where Kate and the midwives had disappeared a few minutes earlier.

"Although the due date is not for several weeks yet the previous ultrasound scan shows nothing unusual so there's nothing to worry about. Mothers-to-be who suffer with preeclampsia in the way that Caitlin has often results in a slightly premature due date." Claire explained. Tony nodded his understanding, not trusting himself to speak and then headed for the side room.

Midwives surrounded the bed where Kate was laying so Tony stood at the far end of the room. He tried to make eye contact with her but there were too many midwives fussing around her.

"Her cervix is dilating." One of the midwives, Ava, commented. Kate was now wearing a hospital gown rather than the clothes she had been wearing previously.

"The baby is coming." Another said happily, causing Kate to demand to know where Tony was.

"I'm right here." Tony assured her, stepping forward and standing between two of the midwives. He took her hand in his and squeezed gently, letting her know that he wasn't going anywhere.

"Caitlin," Ava began. "Your cervix is fully dilated now, the baby really is on the way. We're going to need you to start pushing now."

Kate shared a look with Tony before turning back to face the nurse.

"Okay." She nodded, gripping Tony's hand so hard that he had to stop himself from crying out in pain.

Ava stood around the other side of the bed and gently encouraged Kate while Claire stood at the bed, waiting for the baby to appear.

"One more push, Caitlin." Claire encouraged while Ava instructed her to maintain her steady breathing. "Come on, Caitlin."

"I can't." Kate said, exhaling sharply. Her long dark hair was stuck to her forehead from the exertion.

"Come on babe, you can do it." Tony persuaded.

Taking Tony's hand in a final bone-crushing grip, Kate pushed as hard as she could.

"I can see the head!" Claire exclaimed and Kate felt such a rush of pride but knew she had to keep going. With one more exhausting push Kate and Tony's baby had finally arrived in the world.

"It's a girl." Claire informed Kate and Tony before taking the tiny bundle away to be washed and checked over.

Tony stroked Kate's face with his hand. "I'm so proud of you, honey." He told her. Kate may be exhausted from childbirth but to Tony she looked more radiant and beautiful than ever.

"I couldn't have done it without you." She replied, leaning her head back against the pillows. "What's taking them so long? I want to see my baby." She said.

"I know, honey." Tony replied. "They'll be back soon."

"Did you want a daughter?" Kate asked.

"I didn't mind." Tony admitted. "What are we going to call her?" He asked, but Kate was prevented from replying when Claire and Ava re-entered the room with a bundle wrapped in pink blankets. Claire handed the baby to Kate who took her into her arms as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

"She's beautiful." Kate said, tears of joy in her eyes as she and Tony set eyes on their daughter properly for the first time.

"Just like her mom." Tony said, offering the tiny child his little finger for her to wrap her hands around.

* * *

Slowly the midwives and Claire began to file out of the room leaving Kate and Tony alone with their daughter. 

"I honestly couldn't be happier than I am right now." Tony said, taking a seat beside Kate's bed and holding their baby in his arms.

Kate smiled. "Me neither. So did we ever decide on a name for her?"

Tony shook his head. "What do you think?" He asked.

Kate leaned over to look their daughter in the face.

"I don't know. I liked the names we thought of but part of me expected to have a son and I don't know why." She admitted.

"I liked the names we thought of too. Grace Isabelle. What do you think about that?" He addressed the bundle in his arms and then looked up at Kate. She nodded her confirmation.

"Grace Isabelle it is." She smiled, leaning over to kiss her baby on the cheek.

* * *

"Can we go and see them yet?" Abby pleaded to Gibbs once her boss had received the call from an elated Tony at the hospital. 

"In the morning Abs." Gibbs smiled at the Goth's enthusiasm and went off to share the happy news with Jenny Shepard, leaving Abby to find McGee.

"Guess what?" Abby demanded, literally bounding over to Timothy McGee's desk I the bullpen.

McGee had given up on these games with his girlfriend long ago.

"What Abby?" He asked, but good-naturedly.

"Kate's had her baby! Tony just called the boss! She had a little girl called Grace Isabelle, isn't that the cutest name?!" Abby said in a rush that it took a while for McGee to translate.

"Will you take me to see them in the morning Tim?" She asked when he had told her how pleased her was.

"Of course baby," He replied and Abby headed back down to her lab all smiles.

* * *

"Isn't she adorable." Jenny Shepard said as she and Jethro Gibbs entered the maternity ward the next morning and saw Kate with her baby in her arms. She looked exhausted but Gibbs and Jenny had never seen her look so happy. 

Gibbs nodded, taking the baby from Kate's arms as Tony looked on, playing his role as the proud father extremely well. Abby and McGee entered the room minutes later and Grace was passed from friend to friend before ending up back in Kate's arms.

"She's really quite cute." McGee said, handing the baby back to Kate. "Even if half of her DNA is the same as Tony's."

Normally this would have been rewarded with a head slap from Tony but today he just smiled at the comment.

"Tony and I have some more news." Kate said when things had calmed down a little.

"You're not having another one are you?" Abby asked incredulously.

Kate laughed. "Not yet!"

Tony reached out for her hand and took over from her.

"Kate and I are getting married. We know we've done things out of order but we felt that the time was right."

After many hugs and kisses of congratulations, Abby spoke up.

"Can I be one of your bridesmaids?" Abby asked and Kate nodded, grinning as she did so. "We would also like the four of you to be our baby's godparents if you'd agree to that."

Surprisingly enough, no one argued with this.


End file.
